(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an automatic rhythm performing apparatus arranged so that the types of rhythm tone generators representing a variety of musical rhythm instruments for constituting various rhythm tones can be altered as desired by its user, to thereby realize diversified automatic rhythm performances.
(b) Description of the Prior Art
As a conventional automatic rhythm performing apparatus, there is known, for example, the one which is of the arrangement that rhythm pattern data for respective rhythm timings of individual percussion instruments for either a singular or plural rhythm kind or kinds are memorized so that pattern pulses are outputted in accordance with a rhythm pattern datum corresponding to the rhythm kind selected by, for example, a rhythm selection switch, and that a rhythm tone generator corresponding to each pattern pulse is driven to obtain rhythm tones (Japanese Patent Preliminary Publication No. 59-191).
In such a conventional automatic rhythm performing apparatus as mentioned above, the types of percussion instruments which constitute a group of musical instruments designated in accordance with the respective rhythm kinds are predetermined fixedly, i.e. the rhythm patterns and the rhythm tone generators are provided to have a fixed one-for-one correspondency once a particular rhythm has been selected, so that there has been the inconvenience that it has been difficult to realize further diversification of the respective tones for the selected rhythm in automatic rhythm performances.
Furthermore, there is known an automatic rhythm performing apparatus comprising a random access memory storing arbitrarily composed rhythm patterns, rhythm pattern composing switches, etc. and arranged so that its user is allowed to freely compose a rhythm pattern desired by the user (Japanese Patent Preliminary Publication No. 54-48515).
However, in this conventional automatic rhythm performing apparatus, while the user has a freedom in setting a desired rhythm pattern according to his or her composition, there is the inconvenience represented by the relative difficulty in the operation of loading rhythm pattern informations.